The International Tobacco Growers’ Association (ITGA) and North Macedonia’s Union of Tobacco Producers held the Oriental Tobacco Forum on Oct. 27 in Prilep, North Macedonia, bringing together growers, researchers, and industry representatives to discuss global leaf markets, production trends, and regulation. North Macedonia has approximately 15,000 tobacco growers who produce 25 million kilograms annually and exports more than $200 million worth of tobacco each year.
ITGA estimates global tobacco production will decline about 5% in 2026 following a strong 2025 crop, with a further decrease projected for 2027. Global Oriental tobacco production is estimated at 138 million kilograms in 2026. Forecasts presented at the forum put North Macedonia’s 2026 crop at 30.8 million kilograms, up 17.5% from 2025, and Bulgarian Oriental production at 4.9 million kilograms, up 43.2%. Greek tobacco production fell to 10.52 million kilograms in 2025 from 12.27 million in 2024, while Turkish tobacco purchases reached approximately 68 million kilograms by the end of August 2026, compared with 48 million kilograms a year earlier.
The forum also covered proposed revisions to EU tobacco product and advertising directives, tobacco excise taxation, and developments under the World Health Organization’s Framework Convention on Tobacco Control. ITGA representatives discussed regulatory effects on growers and rural economies ahead of the treaty’s 12th Conference of the Parties, scheduled for 2027 in Yerevan, Armenia.
